black or blue?
 

If you have painted the back of your tank what color did you choose, and are you happy with how it looks?

Oops I messed up adding the poll. I wanted to ask...

-black
-blue
-artificial backing
-clear

moderator help?

fixed it for ya :biggrin:

I chose blue for my current. I put a sticky plastic coat of blue on the back of my tank (I'm sure theres a more technical term for it :razz:). Previously I had a tank that I bought already painted black. I saw another reefer that had a nice blue on the back of his tank and really liked it enough to give it a try. Eventually it got covered over with algae and junk anyways :neutral:

I voted black but I would maybe go with dark, dark blue.

All mine are painted black but I would go for the fake backing if I could.

I have the vinyl sheet that's black on one side and blue on the other, so I can change it to suit my moods. :mrgreen: Really like that blue!

vinyl! thats the word I was looking for! anyways, I don't have mine stuck on, just taped on as I wasn't sure I would like it. I would suggest trying out the double sided stuff as ReeferRob suggested, that way you can decide which you like better :biggrin:

i chose black because it mask the overflow more and the lockline will not stand out as much. just my opinion though

vinyl!!! I see great minds think alike :lol:

I've got Vinyl on the back of my big tank as well. Black Vinyl. Picked it up at Fabricland.

I chose black.Black back and sand would contrast nice with bright coral.

I did blue but I wish I would have done black, it would bring out the colors more.

Steve

I choose the vinyl because I went to purchase a used tank today & someone painted 3 sides of the acrylic tank , which I want 360 degree view in center of room so it wouldn't work . I thought too much work to remove paint.

But For my other tank I used blue vinyl ( 110 gal fish only)

I used blue sm hard insulation, easy to remove, on velcro and can still view the back of the tank when needed.

My backing is black and I think it looks more classy but makes the tank look darker.

I like the black that I have on my current tank, things really stand out againt it but any junk stuck to the black glass really does as well. I had a dark blue to black gradient on my nano, that was really cool and proably the way I will go next time.

You can do the gradient with spray paint but I think it would be a big pita.

The gradient with black bottom, blue top would be the best of both worlds. Not a HUGE PITA with spraypaint.

vinyl looks good and you can always change it.

http://i88.photobucket.com/albums/k1.../Img2005-8.jpg

Back
http://i88.photobucket.com/albums/k1.../Img2005-7.jpg

i was thinking of going with blue, but in the end i chose to go with black because the corals stand out much better.

cheers

I like the look of both blue, and black-backed tanks. However, all my tanks are black. I find black to be more dramatic, and it looks a lot better if you can't contantly keep up with keeping your back glass cleaned. Blue does look a bit more natural, I think.

reply
 

Nobody thought about white? I've seen white back grounds on tanks and they really brighten up the whole thing.

You can spray paint pexi to get a blue-black gradient or have it black behind your rockwork and backlit blue between rocks to simulate open water. Just tape it on. There are some cool ideas in Sprung Vol.3 .

http://members.shaw.ca/btooms/aquasc1.jpg

Blue looks nice with my tank!

good idea

Anyone know where you can buy these tank backgrounds?

Can't seem to find them listed at either OA or J&L?

Looking for one for my 72gal bow (48" wide back)

Try any auto detailing shop - they usually have this vinyl that you can easily use. It is cheap (at least it was for me - they gave it to me.)

When I did mine 2 years ago Hidden Reef had it by the roll.

Most pet stores carry it in different widths (width of the backing corresponds to your tank height) buy some a couple inches longer than you need, wet the back of your tank with a sprayer or just a sponge, put the backing on, use a squeegie or a sponge to push out air bubbles and when the water you wet the glass with dries the backing will be stuck to your glass. I myself used one that was light blue on top and faded almost to black at the bottom, it looked very natural and did nothing to distract from the tank and it's inhabitants. I may paint this tank because of the external overflow but if I do it will be the same thing, blue top fading to black at the bottom. If you are going to paint it I suggest you clean the glass very well with either some rubbing alcohol or vinegar or you may end up with little fish eye bubbles in the paint.

Doug

My situation is that the tank is already setup and there is only about 4-5 inches of clearance at the back, so no opportunity to do any real "work" back there.

I suspect my only real solution is to buy one of those pre-made backgrounds and just tape it to the back of the tank.

I do like the idea of having a blue to black gradient, I will have to look for something like that!